SUNNYSIDE — Live concerts are coming to a public plaza under the 7 train this summer.
The Sunnyside Shines Business Improvement District is inviting musicians and dancers to perform monthly shows in the Bliss Plaza at 46th Street, directly under the 7 train tracks, beginning in June, according to the BID's director Rachel Thieme.
The shows, called the "Third Thursdays in Bliss Plaza" will take place every third Thursday evening of the month from June to October, she said.
The two public plazas under the train, including Lowery Plaza at 40th Street, only opened last year with tables, chairs and greenery to serve as a gathering spots for the neighborhood, Thieme said.
"We opened these two plazas last year, and our next step, what we want to focus on this year, is really starting some programing to further activate those spaces," Thieme said. "We want to keep doing things to make it more of a community space."
The BID is working with local arts group ReCreate QNS to run an open call for artists who want to participate in the series, Thieme said.
Nancy Kleaver, one of ReCreate QNS' founders, said they were looking for performances "to surprise and delight people as they come off the 7 train."
"We're hoping to have a variety of dance, music and theater, and see how each of them plays in the space," she said.
She added that while anyone can apply for the gigs, they're looking for local artists.
"This seemed like such a great opportunity to really, literally bring out into the open air all of the great artists we have living in our own backyard," she said.
The events are being funded in part with a grant from the Queens Council on the Arts, but the BID also plans to launch an online fundraiser this week to raise additional money to pay for performers and other costs. The goal is to raise $5,000, Thieme said.
This isn't the first time the 7 train plazas have been used to host entertainment — musicians from Make Music New York have also performed there in recent years.
"We're very open to it being different each month, based on what the needs of the different performers," she said. "It's a flexible space."
